, that is all."

"You are, then, the man I am looking for," went on Mr. Brown. "We have
come all the way through the storm to find my little boy's pony. It's
name is Toby and it has been stolen from the stable--it was taken some
time in the night, and a dog, named Splash, seems to be gone also. I
don't say you, or any of your gypsies, took the dog and pony, but I
would like to know if you know anything about them.

"You were once at my house, asking to be allowed to buy the trick pony,"
went on Bunny's father, "and we have come a long way to ask if you have
seen it."

Jaki Kezar seemed quite surprised. He looked first at Mr. Brown and then
at Bunny and Bunker.

"Your pony stolen?" he exclaimed.

"He's gone," Bunny answered. "And I guess he was stolen. For he was
locked in the barn, but when I went out to look at him, as I always do,
he wasn't there."

"That's too bad!" exclaimed the gypsy. "I am sorry. And let me tell you,
Mr. Brown," he went on, "that I did not steal Toby, and nobody in my
camp did. I know that some gypsies are not honest, and they may take
things that do not belong to them. But _we_ do not. Come, you shall look
all through our camp and see for yourself that Toby is not here, nor the
dog, Splash, either. We do not steal things! Come and look for
yourselves. You shall see that Toby is not here!"

"Then where is he?" asked Bunny, whose heart seemed to sink away down in
his rubber boots when he heard the gypsy say this.

"I don't know where he is, little man," the gypsy replied. "But he is
not here. I wish he was. That is, I wish you had sold him to me, but I
would never take your pony from you if you did not want me to have him.
Come and see that he is not here."

The gypsy turned to lead the way up along the path toward the wagons and
tents, and, as he did so, the barking of dogs was heard.

"Maybe one of them is Splash," said Bunker Blue.

"No," answered the gypsy, "those are all our dogs. There is not a
strange one among them. If there was, our dogs would fight him--at least
they would until they made friends. No, neither your pony nor dog is
here, I'm sorry to say, though I would like to own that pony for
myself. But come and see!"

So Bunny, his father and Bunker Blue went up to the gypsy camp. They saw
the tents and wagons, in which lived the dark-skinned men, women and
children who traveled about from place to place, buying and selling
horses, baskets and other things, and telling f